Philosophical Story Challenge of the Week

Well, I’m sure at least some of you saw my giant ramble on Thursday. I must apologize that I didn’t have a more coherent post put together, but with Alayna visiting the post kind of slipped my mind. That being said, I do think that the issue of meaning is one of the most significant challenges that modern culture faces. So, this is my question for you today: what is meaning and where does it come from?

Obviously, this is a pretty complicated question, so we can simplify it some to this: what gives life meaning? Plato argued that the only goals truly worth pursuing are those goals that are pursued for their own sake and nothing else. This led him to propose eudaimonia as the worthy goal of life. This Greek word is commonly translated ‘happiness’, but a better translation for Plato’s usage might be ‘joy’, ‘contentment’, or ‘fulfillment.’ Augustine argued that the glory of God was the only thing worth pursuing, because God was the only thing worth glorifying. Nietzsche, on the other hand, saw the goal of life as the development of personal power, or the power to do that which I will to do. Epicurus saw pleasure (especially intellectual pleasure) as the ultimate goal of life. So, is it some ultimate goal that gives life meaning? Is it the immediate moment? Something else?

As always, write a story of 1000 words that presents and defends your answer.